3 pacts to bolster India-Australia security ties

India and Australia are expected to sign three military-related agreements this week to enhance cooperation in information sharing, maritime domain awareness and joint military activities.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) announced that the agreements will be inked during Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s two-day official visit to Australia on October 9 and 10, at the invitation of Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister of Australia Richard Marles.

This marks the first official visit by a Defence Minister to Australia under the current government since 2014. Richard Marles last visited India in June 2025, where he met Rajnath Singh and called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Defence engagement between the two nations has steadily expanded to include wide-ranging interactions between the services, military-to-military exchanges, high-level visits, capacity-building and training programmes, maritime cooperation, ship visits and bilateral exercises, the MoD stated.

Rajnath’s visit coincides with the fifth anniversary of the India–Australia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP), which was established in 2020 after elevating their earlier Strategic Partnership, formed in 2009.

During the trip, the minister will hold bilateral discussions with his Australian counterpart and chair a business roundtable in Sydney, attended by industry leaders from both countries.

The two nations share a deep bond rooted in common values — pluralistic, democracies, Commonwealth traditions, growing economic engagement, and increasing high-level interactions. Long-standing people-to-people connections, the presence of Indian students in Australian universities as well as robust tourism and sporting ties, have further strengthened the enduring partnership between the two countries.